Barone, Giuseppe - Ruling February 3, 1994

Ruling, February 3, 1994

the Application of Giuseppe Barone for Extension of a Tidal Wetlands Permit
pursuant to Environmental Conservation Law Article 25

ISSUES RULING

DEC Application No. 2-6308-126/1-0

February 3, 1994

On January 25, 1994, I wrote to both parties regarding whether it would be necessary to have a hearing on the question of whether Mr. Barone's permit could be extended or if he would need to apply for a new permit. In response to my letter, Mr. Saragoussi, on behalf of Mr. Barone, sent me copies of three letters which had not been included with the hearing referral. He also inquired about the regulations which were in effect regarding renewals and extensions of tidal wetlands permits on September 1, 1987.

September 1, 1987 is the date of one of the three letters which Mr. Saragoussi sent to me. On that date, and October 8, 1987 (the effective date of the permit), the section of 6 NYCRR Part 621 regarding renewals of permits did not state that the application for a renewal needed to be submitted any specified number of days prior to the permit's expiration date. Part 661, however, as it read on both September 1 and October 8, 1987, contained a provision identical to that in the current tidal wetlands regulation. Former 661.22(b) and the current 661.13(b) both state that, "The expiration date of any permit issued pursuant to this Part may be extended by the chief permit administrator for good cause shown upon a written request to him filed prior to the expiration date. Any such extension may not exceed one year in duration."

In addition, the permit itself contained a general condition which provided that the permittee is responsible for keeping the permit active by submitting a renewal application no later than 30 days prior to the expiration date.

There does not appear to be any dispute that the permit has expired and that the permittee did not request an extension until over two years after the permit expired. Thus, the permit could not be extended at this time and Mr. Barone will need to submit a new application for the project.

This conclusion is essentially a ruling that, with respect to the request for an extension of the permit, no issues exist which would require adjudication in a hearing. The request for an extension of the permit is denied, unless this ruling is reversed or modified by the Commissioner of Environmental Conservation. I would emphasize that this conclusion does not relate to the merits of the project itself and that I am not making any findings or conclusions at this time regarding whether the project complies with the tidal wetlands regulations nor whether a permit should be issued in response to a new application.

This issues ruling may be appealed to the Commissioner of Environmental Conservation pursuant to 6 NYCRR 624.6(d). I am extending the deadline for any such appeals to February 11, 1994. Any appeals must be mailed by February 11, 1994 and are to be sent to the following address: Commissioner Thomas C. Jorling, c/o Robert H. Feller, Assistant Commissioner for Hearings, NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, 50 Wolf Road, Albany, New York 12233-1550.